"What a Wonderful World" is a song written by Bob Thiele (as George Douglas) and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released as a single in 1968. Thiele and Weiss were both prominent in the music world (Thiele as a producer and Weiss as a composer/performer). Some have suggested that pianist Dana Pelkie collaborated on the song using "George Douglas" as a pseudonym, but this has never been confirmed. Armstrong's recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.

Contents

History

Intended as an antidote for the increasingly racially and politically charged climate of everyday life in the United States, the song also has a hopeful, optimistic tone with regard to the future, with reference to babies being born into the world and having much to look forward to. The song was initially offered to Tony Bennett, who turned the song down.[1] Thereafter, it was offered to Louis Armstrong. The song was not initially a hit in the United States, where it sold fewer than 1,000 copies because the head of ABC Records did not like the song and so did not promote it, but was a major success in the United Kingdom, reaching number one on the UK singles chart. In the U.S. the song hit #116 on the Bubbling Under Charts. It was also the biggest-selling single of 1968 in the UK where it was also among the last pop singles issued by HMV Records before becoming an exclusive classical music label.[2] The song made Louis Armstrong the oldest male to top the charts, at sixty-six years and ten months old. Armstrong's record was broken in 2009 when the cover of Islands in the Stream recorded for Comic Relief reached number one. One of the featured artists on the song was Tom Jones.[3]

ABC Records' European distributor EMI forced ABC to issue a What A Wonderful World album in 1968 (catalogue number ABCS-650) which did not chart in the US due to ABC's non-promotion of it,[4] but did chart in the UK where it was issued by Stateside Records with catalogue number SSL 10247 and peaked on the British chart at #37.

The song gradually became something of a standard and reached a new level of popularity. It was re-released in America shortly after Armstrong's death in 1971 and became a top ten hit.[citation needed] In 1988, Louis Armstrong's 1968 recording was featured in the film Good Morning Vietnam and was re-released as a single, hitting #32 on the US Billboard chart in February 1988. The single charted at number one for the fortnight ending June 27, 1988 on the Australian charts.

Playings

"What a Wonderful World" was used ironically in 1978 radio broadcast of the last episode of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy(first series). The song replaced the usual end credits as the two main characters, stranded on pre-history Earth, lament its destruction witnessed in the first episode. The song was later used for the closing titles of the corresponding television episode, and in the first teaser for the Hitchhiker'sfilm, lasting only one stanza before the Earth explodes.

In 1985, a part of the song was used in The Runner (Davandeh), a famous Iranian movie. It was included in the soundtrack for the film Good Morning, Vietnam in 1987, and, thanks to its newfound exposure in the film, it landed at #1 in Australia, becoming Armstrong's biggest hit there. In the film, the song plays over a montage of bombings and other violence (similar to the use of the song "We'll Meet Again" in the film Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb). This use of the song in an ironic way has since become something of a cliché in film and television. Its use in Good Morning, Vietnam led to its eventual use in yet another Vietnam War themed fiction, Tour of Duty.

In 1989, the Louis Armstrong rendition of the song was used as the opening theme for the pilot episode of the television sitcom Family Matters. It would be subsequently replaced by Jesse Frederick's "As Days Go By".

The Louis Armstrong version was also used during a sequence in Michael Moore's film Bowling for Columbine, where it accompanies scenes of violence in a montage about United States intervention in international affairs, as well as having the Joey Ramone cover playing over the ending credits. In the 2005 film, Madagascar it appears as a background song for a scene where, ironically, various cute animals are eaten by other animals living on the "Wonderful World". On the program Pirate Radio (airing in Nashville, Tennessee, 1999–2001), an acoustic guitar version was used weekly as a music bed. It has also been used ironically as the theme music to the BBC series A Life of Grime, and as the closing theme to one series of Grumpy Old Men, in a version performed by the cast of the programme. The Louis Armstrong version was used also in the 2004 Japanese film Swing Girls during a scene where the main characters are chased by a wild boar. It was also used in the show House, in the episode DNR. It is also featured in the sixth episode of the BBC/Kudos 1973-set crime drama, Life on Mars. The Joey Ramone cover was also played over the ending credits of the BBC Radio 4 comedy series Chris Addison's Civilisation and in the commercial for "Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction". The Israel Kamakawiwo'ole medley with Over the Rainbow was featured in the films Finding Forrester, Meet Joe Black, and 50 First Dates.

In recent years, the song has come to be associated with the Christmas season (although it has no holiday or seasonal content in its lyrics) and has become a staple for the "Father/Daughter" dance at wedding receptions. In 2006, XM Satellite Radio added "What a Wonderful World" to its Holiday/Christmas rotation, as did many terrestrial radio stations in the U.S. Numerous recording artists have covered the song for inclusion on their Christmas-themed albums, including Newsong and LeAnn Rimes. Also in 2006, a rock version appeared in the Suzuki New Grand Vitara television commercial performed by David Mills and Ian Wilson. The song has also been used for New Year's Eve in New York.

It was also used in the end of The Longest Day episode of Home Improvement where Tim thinks of all the memories he's had with Randy.

A cover performed by Donna Burke, in the English version, and Louis Armstrong in the Japanese version, was also played near the end of the episode, "What a Wonderful World", of the animated Japanese show, Vandread.

Industrial metal band Ministry (band) did a cover to this song as well, keeping with the sweet music of the original until halfway through the song when it becomes much more energetic and metal. It can be found on their 2008 album Cover Up (Ministry album).

The British satirical series Spitting Image did their own version of What a Wonderful World at the end of an episode as a protest about the state of the world and humanity in general by changing the title of the song to 'We Ruined the World'. This version was sung by a puppet of similar appearance to Louis Armstrong to images of war and environmental destruction.

The song was played in a montage of the Sydney Harbour Bridge fireworks of the 1999-2000 New Year's Eve in a CNN Millenium Special called CNN 2000.

It was also played as part of America's largest fireworks display ever during the 250th Birthday celebration for the city of Pittsburgh on October 4, 2008.

The Joey Ramone version also played on the 15th episode of the second season of the WB series Gilmore Girls.

On the sixth series of The X Factor, a reality singing competition in the UK, finalist Stacey Solomon sang the song for her successful audition and again in the series final. She eventually finished third overall.

1999 Anne Murray: on her album What a Wonderful World, which sold an estimated 2.5 million worldwide. It went #1 Contemporary Christian, #4 Country and #38 Pop on the US Billboard charts. It also spawned a book and DVD. The album was re-released in 2008 as a 14-song set.

2009 The Clarks, Restless Days album, High Wire Music, Clark House Entertainment, recorded at Swissvale Music Studio in Swissvale PA

Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia covered this song with The Jerry Garcia Band during live performances; it appears on Pure Jerry series #7 as an encore along with special guest Bruce Hornsby. Joan Baez has also played the song during her live performances.